


Happy Go Lucky

by DanniFielding



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-25
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-16 16:09:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,619
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29703135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DanniFielding/pseuds/DanniFielding
Summary: Tilla Farmer was five years old when she was approached in the woods by her cottage, a man shrouded in darkness asking if she wanted to make everyone happy. For the next hundred years she bounced around, doing everything she could to make the Enchanted Forest a better place. Until, one night, she was captured by the Lost Boys. Plot Bunny. Hook/OC
Relationships: Captain Hook | Killian Jones/Original Character(s)
Kudos: 1





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> "You're still a man who makes wrong choices."
> 
> Rumpelstiltskin's mother severed his destiny when he was a baby, turning him from the path of a saviour to one of darkness and disappointment as he made one bad decision after another. The good choices he could have made haunted him when he was a man, he refused to let that continue when he was the Dark One.
> 
> Tilla Farmer was five years old when she was approached in the woods by her cottage, a man shrouded in darkness asking if she wanted to make everyone happy. For the next hundred years she bounced around, doing everything she could to make the Enchanted Forest a better place. Until, one night, she was captured by the Lost Boys. She fought, she was rescued, and she danced on the waters of Neverland until, somehow, she became trapped in a magic bottle and the whole world forgot she existed.
> 
> Killian Jones warred with Peter Pan for decades. It was in his past and he was grateful for the new life he'd begun to create with Emma Swan. He had no memory of the blonde woman who fell from a bottle that Tinkerbell had swiped, nor of the heartbreak that she smiled through. But, for the first time in a while, he found someone who loved the stars as much as he did and another unlikely friendship formed in his life.

The Ogre War was nowhere from being a memory of the past. Thousands of children were at home, safe and un-slaughtered. The towns and villages were safe for the first time in a long time, but fear took time to leave and wounds took time to heal. There were so many lost, so many harmed, that it would take more than a few years for people to feel safe in their homes. And then there was the fact that the Dark One, the source of all dark magic in the kingdom, sat in his house overlooking them all and no one knew what that meant. They only knew that it wasn't good.

Of course, to a five-year-old, none of that meant anything at all. Tilla Farmer just wanted to play. She wanted to be in the woods, where it was said fairies lived, and she really didn't want to be inside where her older brothers were sat, talking quietly and keeping secrets she wasn't allowed in on. Who cared what her stupid brothers were talking about, anyway? War seemed scary; it was like they wanted to go back. She just wanted to play.

The woods by her house were wonderful. She sometimes wished she had friends who lived nearby, but the woods were so wonderful that she didn't actually mind it much of the time. The lights sparkled around her and made her happy. One day she was sure she was going to see a real fairy. There was a blue one, apparently, and that was her favourite colour. Maybe one day she could be a fairy as well. They made everyone happy.

She stopped, suddenly, in the sparkles and the leaves as something changed. She wasn't sure what it was, but she could feel it all around her and she knew something was different. It was behind her, so she turned.

There was a person behind her. Someone who hadn't been there before, in a heavy, fancy robe with the hood up hiding their face. They made her feel uneasy, but mainly she was curious so she looked up at them like she did every adult she met. And, like with every adult she met, she was incredibly polite.

"Hello," she greeted. "Are you lost?"

The person tilted their head down, shadowing their face even more. "Are you?" they asked in return. She couldn't help but smile; their voice was weird, she liked it.

"No, I live here," she said. "My mom said I can't wander too far away, but I don't have to be home until it's dark."

"It's always a little bit dark, my dear," they replied before pulling their hood down. Tilla's smile grew even bigger.

"You're sparkling," she exclaimed. The man underneath the robe had messy, curly hair, but his skin shone green with scales. "How do you do that?"

He stared at her for a moment before pointing at her. "What's your name?" he asked.

She shuffled on the spot. "I'm not supposed to tell people I don't know," she explained. "My mom said so."

"Your mother is a shrewd woman," he replied, and she guessed he meant 'clever', which she agreed.

"She is. She knows everything," she stated. The man crouched down in front of her, his robe bunching up like a big blanket. It looked very warm.

"Tell you what, let's make a deal," he offered. "If I tell you my name, you tell me yours?"

Tilla looked back at him, her little brain working hard to see if she should tell him or not. But he shot her a wide smile and she nodded. "Good choice," he praised. "I am Rumplestiltskin." He waved his arm with a flourish, over exaggerating his declaration and Tilla giggled in amusement. He then motioned to her. "Now it's your turn."

"Tilla," she replied. "I'm Tilla." She caught herself and gave a little curtsey. "It's very nice to meet you."

The man chuckled and she liked the noise. "Tilla, can I ask you a question?" She nodded. "Do you like to make people happy?"

"I do," she said. "Especially my mom."

"I thought you would," he praised. "And, and this is a special question; can you see all the sparkles?"

He waved his hand in the air, making the light swim around them and she watched, mesmerised. "I'm going to take that as a yes," he muttered to himself. "Tilla—" she looked back at him; "-would you like to make everything sparkle? Even outside of the woods?" She nodded eagerly.

"Like the fairies?" she asked and he pointed at her like she had gotten the answer correct.

"Just like the fairies," he agreed. "And how would you like to make everyone happy? All of the time? How do you think that would make you feel?"

Tilla thought back on her very short life. She thought on her mother smiling when her brothers came home, and when her father followed shortly after. She remembered running and playing with her friends in the village, and seeing birds fly overhead and how happy that made her feel.

"I think I would like that," she said slowly and the man grinned again.

"Well, today is your lucky day," he told her. "I'm going to give you the ability to make everybody happy all the time. You'll feel like you'll never be able to stop."

"I'm not supposed to take things from strangers," Tilla immediately cut in. "My mom…"

"Yes, yes, I'm sure she did say that," he quickly interrupted. "But, but, this will help you mother, and your father, and the rest of your little family. Wouldn't you like that?"

And when she nodded, something amazing happened. Something that made her light up all over her body and made her feel like she was going to be happy forever. She rushed off home, leaving Rumplestiltskin stood in the forest, watching the little girl dash away.

He did feel bad, if he thought on it too long. He knew how terrible, and angry, he would have felt had something happened to Baelfire like he had just done to Tilla. But then when he thought on Bae, he thought on everything that had gone wrong in his short life. On how he had almost died, and how his mother had left him all alone, with only a coward of a father to look after him. How the people in the village treated them both. Every decision Rumplestiltskin had made to try and make his son's world a better place was always the wrong one. And then, eventually, his choices had led him to watch his son fall out of his world and be gone forever.

His wrong choices had always been tainted by the right ones he should have made. Every wrong turn had shone a light on the right one he could have taken, but instead he had walked down the wrong path. He couldn't bear to live with those ghosts anymore.

He didn't wait around to watch run home anymore. He felt bad, but that was nothing new. Now, finally, at least he'd have peace.


	2. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "You're still a man who makes wrong choices."
> 
> Rumpelstiltskin's mother severed his destiny when he was a baby, turning him from the path of a saviour to one of darkness and disappointment as he made one bad decision after another. The good choices he could have made haunted him when he was a man, he refused to let that continue when he was the Dark One.
> 
> Tilla Farmer was five years old when she was approached in the woods by her cottage, a man shrouded in darkness asking if she wanted to make everyone happy. For the next hundred years she bounced around, doing everything she could to make the Enchanted Forest a better place. Until, one night, she was captured by the Lost Boys. She fought, she was rescued, and she danced on the waters of Neverland until, somehow, she became trapped in a magic bottle and the whole world forgot she existed.
> 
> Killian Jones warred with Peter Pan for decades. It was in his past and he was grateful for the new life he'd begun to create with Emma Swan. He had no memory of the blonde woman who fell from a bottle that Tinkerbell had swiped, nor of the heartbreak that she smiled through. But, for the first time in a while, he found someone who loved the stars as much as he did and another unlikely friendship formed in his life.

Tinker Bell hadn't had a home in a long time. Not since she'd been a fairy, and called Green, and had hopes of helping people just because it was the right thing to do. She'd never thought she'd be back to that feeling again, but there she was. Sure, Storybrooke wasn't exactly the Enchanted Forest, and she still _technically_ didn't have visible wings, but the world was starting to look like a much brighter place now that she was back in the fold with Blue and the rest of the fairies. Also, she wasn't _quite_ sure what a convent was, but she liked it. It was simple, and she had her own room. She could finally start proving herself once again to be the fairy she knew she could be. She wasn't about to let Blue down now.

She was enjoying her time to settle into her room. She'd not brought a lot with her from Neverland, because quite frankly she'd not had a lot to begin with. Just a little satchel with a blanket or two and some of the trinkets she'd acquired was all she'd had to her name. She wasn't much for possessions, but she hadn't been able to bring herself to leave them behind and so she decided to decorate with them as a reminder of how far she'd come.

Nestled in the blankets and cloth she'd brought with her was a bottle. It had seen better days, she thought as she turned it in her hands. She had taken it from Pan a long time ago and he'd never seemed to have noticed. Or, rather, he'd decided that the bottle was exactly where it should be. It was a blue colour, with golden decoration and a matching topper which was missing a chunk out of it. She wasn't even sure why she'd grabbed it, or why Pan had kept it, but she'd never been quite able to part with it. She guessed it was because it felt like it had been discarded, which was how she had felt for a long time.

She shrugged to herself. Well, now she was about to start a new life amongst the fairies as she should have all along. She was no longer discarded, and neither was the bottle. And she had the perfect place for it on a little shelf above the head of her bed. Both of them had new homes.

She was surprised as she tripped. She wasn't actually clumsy, but she'd managed to catch her foot on the leg of a wooden chair that she'd moved to place some flower decorations on the wall. She caught herself very quickly, but the bottle wasn't so lucky and crashed to the floor.

"Oh no, no, no," she said, almost frantic, rather upset that the bottle would end up in a thousand pieces as it hit the wooden floorboards. She sighed in relief when the only thing that happened was that the top of the bottle popped off. She stepped closer to pick it up, reminding herself to be careful with it.

She froze on the spot as faint blue smoke began to billow out of it, swirling around and around as a shadow began to form inside. She was absolutely stunned when the shadow solidified into a figure of a woman. Her arms were out by her side, her knees bent as if she was trying to catch her balance. Her head looked from side to side before she spun around to face Tink. She raised her fists, looking ready to attack. Not that she looked like she could hold herself in a fight, but Tink knew better than to judge on size alone.

Then she frowned, straightening up slightly. "Tink?" she asked, which confused the fairy all the more.

"Yeah," she replied. "Who are you? Why were you in my bottle?"

It was a weird thing to say, and a little childish when Tink thought back on it, but it was the first thing she thought of. The woman looked like she came from the Enchanted Forest rather than this strange world without magic. She had bright blonde hair, with a blue dress and wristbands to match, all very much of a style Tink was used to seeing.

The woman also didn't seem too surprised that she didn't know who she was. She just looked rather disappointed. "I was trapped in there," she explained vaguely before looking around. "Where are we? This doesn't look like Neverland."

"Oh, no, we're not on Neverland anymore," Tink explained, always a little happy to say the fact out loud. "Actually, we're in a new land."

"A new land?" the woman asked. "So not even the Enchanted Forest?"

Tink wasn't sure if she was the best person to explain everything for her, and part of her felt rather sad that she had absolutely no idea who she was even though it was clear that the woman felt comfortable around her. However, during her rather hectic time in Storybrooke, she knew the best course of action to take when something strange had happened, especially involving a woman in a bottle.

"How about I take you to the sheriff?" she offered as she scooped up the bottle from the floor, placing the lid back on it. "I'm sure she can explain it to you better than I can."

The woman nodded, again proving that she seemed to trust Tinker Bell. "A sheriff does sound like a good idea right now," she agreed as she followed Tink out of the room. "Does this new land have a name?"

"Storybrooke."

_~0~0~0~_

Tink ushered the woman into the Sheriff's Office gently, glad to see Emma sat behind her desk, eating a donut with her father, mother and little brother in the other room. There were only a few places she knew the family would be, but she was glad she didn't have to go searching. Emma was the first to spot them and quickly swallowed down her mouthful.

"Tink!" she exclaimed, alerting everyone else to her presence. She immediately looked a little suspicious at the other woman. "And- And a friend?"

Tink nodded before she really thought about it. "This is…" She paused, realising she hadn't actually asked the woman her name.

The woman offered a little wave. "Tilla," she said softly.

"Tilla," Tink repeated with a nod. "She came out of my bottle." She held out the bottle, as if that would clear up anything she said. "I-I dropped it, and she came out in smoke. You seemed the best people to help."

Emma stood up and walked over to take the bottle off her, while David- or Prince Charming, depending and when and who you asked – walked over to join them. "Well, you definitely came to the right place," Emma muttered as she turned it over in her hands.

"As a family we have a history of people in bottles," David explained to Tilla.

"Which I'm not sure is a good thing," Snow White – or Mary Margret, again depending on the when and who was talking – called over as she bounced her son.

"You've dealt with people in bottles before?" Tilla asked them, curious.

"Up until recently, no. But we're becoming quite skilled in it," Emma replied before looking up at her. "Let's start with the basics. Where are you from?"

Tilla didn't seem too bothered about being questioned. "The Enchanted Forest, originally. But I was trapped in _that_ ," she motioned to the bottle, "on Neverland. It's an island…"

"Actually, we're quite familiar with Neverland," Emma cut in, as she was very happy to not be reminded of that place. "Pan trapped you in a bottle? Why would he do that?"

She shook her head. "He didn't. I was trapped in by a rather powerful, evil sorcerer of a man."

"Let me guess; about this tall," Charming started, holding his hand up, "likes to make deals. A bit scaley?"

She nodded. "You know him?"

"Oh, we know Rumplestiltskin very well," Emma drawled. "Question is; why did he want you trapped in a bottle?"

"Emma!" a voice called. "There were none of those little ones you like, so I stuck with the coffee."

Captain Hook, or Killian Jones, walked into the room with a couple of disposable coffee cups in hand. He looked at the group with slight surprise. "Oh, sorry, I wasn't expecting guests. I would have brought more. What's going on?"

Emma nodded towards Tilla. "Apparently Tink had a bottle that contained a woman. This is Tilla."

He nodded his head at her. "Charmed, I'm sure," he greeted in his own typical way.

Tilla swallowed hard at the complete lack of recognition on his face. Her mouth felt dry, but she could feel the need to cry spike. "Always," she replied, again softly, unsurely.

_~0~0~0~_

It had been a while since Killian had made it this far inland. Pan was incredibly good at keeping the Captain and his crew off the island, and it wasn't exactly a pastime that he wanted to partake in often. They may have looked like children, but they all knew better than to encounter the Lost Boys and their leader. Unless, of course, it was for something rather valuable. And there had been whispers on the wind that Pan had something very valuable indeed on him.

Captain Hook wasn't bothered at all what it was. It was valuable, and a pirate made it his duty to make sure anything of any worth became his property.

 _Killian_ just really hoped it was a way out of Neverland. He had wasted too many years being stuck in the land where no one ever aged. He needed to get out, and get back to getting his revenge. Each passing day felt more and more of a waste and he was tired of playing Pan's games.

But, as he had told Smee when they had made their way off the Jolly Roger and onto the island, play his games they must. So, they had tracked, and they had hunted, and he and his first mate had finally begun to get back onto the trail of the Lost Boys who had been circling the island with, hopefully, the very valuable thing in tow.

They were very careful as they came upon the clearing. The fire had died, but it didn't appear that it had been out long. They were almost gaining on them. They just had to hope that, whatever Pan was having them hide, it would be easy to find.

"You know, if you're trying to sneak up on people, you really shouldn't do it in the daylight," a voice called to them. "And, really, you shouldn't do it in all leather."

The voice caused them to both jump and pull out their swords. It took a second longer for Killian to realise that the voice was female, not male nor a teenager. He held his hand out to Smee then stepped out the overgrowth into the clearing.

"I think you'll find that my outfit it fit for a multitude of occasions, including hunting down vicious children," he replied. "Which you, I can tell, are not."

"Well done, Captain," the voice praised. "Clever, I see."

"Well, I'm not just a pretty face," he drawled, turning around on the spot slowly, trying to spot where the voice was coming from.

"Although, having both is definitely an advantage you possess."

He smiled to himself slightly, smug and loving the slight ego boost. "I wish I could offer you the same compliment," he stated.

"To your left," she replied. He turned to his left. "Little more, Captain. Next to the rather large tree."

He felt a little foolish, he had to admit, when he saw the cage that was only partially hidden by the leaves surrounding it, or the bush it was hidden in. He walked over and used his sword to swipe some of the leaves away.

Inside the cage sat a young woman, legs crossed and looking up at him with one eyebrow cocked. "Ah, there's that pretty face," she said. "Not very observant, are you, love?"

"I'm sorry if I'm not expecting a damsel in distress in the middle of a jungle," he replied a little sharply.

"Well, that's what you've come across," she replied. "What can I do for you?"

He didn't put his sword away, but he did lower it so it hung by his side. "Actually, I was just playing a game of hide and seek with the young gentlemen," he explained.

"Oh?" she replied. "And your friend, over there? Is he the one looking for the Lost Boys and Pan's valuable treasure?"

Killian motioned to Mr Smee, who quickly scuttled to his captain's side. "And what do you know about that?"

"I'm trapped in a cage in the middle of Neverland. I think you can work that out for yourself."

"You're the treasure," he realised, saying it slowly and she nodded.

"That I am, love," she confirmed. "I'm also very much trapped. So, how about you be a sport, and let me out?"

"Ah, now why would I do that?" he asked, tutting slightly. "Pan obviously locked you up for a reason, perhaps it's best if we leave you here to rot. Smee, let's move on. We're losing ground."

"No, no, wait!" she cried as he turned away. "I promise I'm not a threat to you. We both want the same thing."

"Oh? And what is that?"

"A way out of Neverland." He paused and turned back to face her. She was looking at him with big, pleading eyes. He had to admit, she was rather attractive. Her blonde hair was wavy, and a little matted from being out in the dirt, but she seemed to radiate a feisty demeanour which he always liked in his women. She looked nothing like his Mila, but then again apart from her he'd always had a bit of a thing for blonde women.

"Everyone is looking for a way out. Doesn't mean they'll ever find one."

"No, but I'm sure I can be of help once you do. Plus, we both hate Pan. Enemy of your enemy and all that nonsense." She moved closer to the front of the cage. "Look, please, just don't leave me here."

"How can you help?" he pressed. She sighed, looking a little uncomfortable, before nodding to the bars.

"See the goo?" she asked him. He moved a little closer, not too close, to see what she was indicating to. It was black, and thick, and he recognised it almost instantly.

"Squid ink," he declared, swiping a little on his finger. She nodded. "You're magical."

"Light magic," she quickly interjected. "A worthy weapon against Pan, right?"

"And yet, you're the one in a cage and he's the one with an entire land under his command."

"Do you want to take the land from him, or just leave it behind?" she countered. "I can't do much in here, but out there I might be able to help."

"I don't know if I want to incur Pan's ire for stealing his pet," he said.

"Please." She reached out to take the bars, but stopped herself just before it. She grimaced and pulled them back. "I won't hurt you; I _can't_ hurt you. I need to get off this island, and so do you. We can help each other. Please."

It was a hard decision, he had to admit. He didn't want to take away Pan's toy because the war between them was hard and had gone on far too long. But, as she looked up at him, pleading for his help, he couldn't just leave her behind. With a heavy sigh, he swiped his sword and cut the bindings off the bars. The front of the cage fell open and the relief on her face was immediate. He reached in and pulled her out.

"There, now you're free, and now you owe me a favour," he declared happily. He looked at Smee. "We could always do with a little bit of magic in this godforsaken place."

"Thank you," she told him honestly. "You won't regret it."

"I better not," he warned.

"Where to now, Captain?" Smee asked.

"Back to the ship," he instructed.

The woman kept close to him, although Killian wasn't about to let her out of his sight. He was wary of magic at the best of times, and he didn't want to give her any opportunity to get the better of him. However, he needn't have worried. She stuck close to him, following dutifully.

"Can't," he said lowly as they reached the beach. She looked up at him. "You said _can't_."

"I did," she agreed.

"It's a strange turn of phrase," he pointed. She nodded.

"That it is," she again agreed. He stopped and stood in front of her, looking at her pointedly.

"You're testing my patience," he told her.

She shrugged. "Well, it's not exactly like I _can_ hurt you," she stated. "If news got back to Pan, he'd know it was me. Then he'd know where I was, and what you'd done, and we'd both be up a creek without that proverbial paddle, wouldn't we?"

He didn't trust her answer. Then again, he was a master at spinning an answer to a question he didn't want to answer so he assumed everyone else was lying. "What's your name?"

"Tilla."

Smee ducked his head into the conversation. "Captain Hook," he introduced for Killian.

"I know," Tilla replied. "Pan's talked about you. You really annoy him."

Killian smirked. "It's part of my charm." He started to walk for where they had hidden their much smaller boat. "I hope you're good at cleaning, Tilla. The Jolly Roger could do with a good tidying."

"Really?" she replied. "Are you going to be _that_ cliché?" Still, she followed, not protesting as they moved the boat into the water. She also didn't protest as she climbed into the boat and sat down at the back.

"I hope you don't get seasick," Killian said. "Mr Smee is not very good with the sound, or smell, of vomiting."

She wrapped her arms around herself. "I'm just glad to be out of the trees," she snapped. "I'm just fine on the water with a captain who can control a ship."

"There's no finer captain than our Captain," Smee spoke up, almost defensive for his captain. Killian greatly appreciated it.

"Now, now, Mr Smee. Let the lady decide for herself," he said. "I'm sure she'll be singing my praises no time, once I show her what I can do." He winked at her and she rolled her eyes.

"Oh, Lord."


	3. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "You're still a man who makes wrong choices."
> 
> Rumpelstiltskin's mother severed his destiny when he was a baby, turning him from the path of a saviour to one of darkness and disappointment as he made one bad decision after another. The good choices he could have made haunted him when he was a man, he refused to let that continue when he was the Dark One.
> 
> Tilla Farmer was five years old when she was approached in the woods by her cottage, a man shrouded in darkness asking if she wanted to make everyone happy. For the next hundred years she bounced around, doing everything she could to make the Enchanted Forest a better place. Until, one night, she was captured by the Lost Boys. She fought, she was rescued, and she danced on the waters of Neverland until, somehow, she became trapped in a magic bottle and the whole world forgot she existed.
> 
> Killian Jones warred with Peter Pan for decades. It was in his past and he was grateful for the new life he'd begun to create with Emma Swan. He had no memory of the blonde woman who fell from a bottle that Tinkerbell had swiped, nor of the heartbreak that she smiled through. But, for the first time in a while, he found someone who loved the stars as much as he did and another unlikely friendship formed in his life.

Emma observed. She was very good at it, she supposed it was part of her superpower. It was probably something to do with being ‘The Saviour’ - a title she was sure she’d never fully get over – to help her find people’s true intentions. Tilla, the new woman in Storybrooke, was currently the one under her scrutiny.

Snow had suggested they took her to Granny’s for something to eat, something Tilla seemed to react rather happily to. She’d probably not eaten for a while. She had taken the modern-ish town and diner in with an intrigue rather than fear, showing that she was used to being in new places. She had let Snow direct to her a booth, which was a sign she was used to taking orders from people. She could see a lot of herself when she was in the foster system. She’d learnt when to defy people, and when to keep her head down and just do what she was told. This was definitely what Tilla was doing.

Granny brought her over a meal and she shot the older woman a big grin. Snow was talking animatedly – ever the Queen – whilst bouncing her baby brother on her lap. Emma was sat at the bar, coffee in hand, Tink and Hook with her as they watched on.

“Well, at least she’s not scared by your mother’s overt friendliness,” Hook commented. “She’ll probably fit in quite well here.”

“She never did answer the question,” Emma replied and he shot her a confused look. “She was trapped in that bottle by Gold. Why? What did she do?”

“I wouldn’t try and place a reason on his behaviour, Swan,” he said. “You know as much as I that everything he does comes from his own selfishness. She probably just forgot to pay her dues.”

“Her dues for _what_ , though?” she pressed.

Tink looked between them, knowing that her work was done and she could leave the strange woman in the hands of the heroes who tended to fix all the town’s problems. “I’m going to head back,” she told the pair.

“Of course, thanks for bringing her to us,” Emma told her. “If you think of anything else strange, let us know.”

“Stranger than a woman coming out of a bottle?” Tink joked as she turned to leave. She then did pause, turning back. “Actually, there was something a bit odd. She recognised here as not being on Neverland, and I swear she knew who I was.”

“But you didn’t?” Emma asked and she shook her head. “What about you?” she asked Hook.

“I’ve never seen her before in my life,” he commented. Emma frowned, deep in thought as she turned back to the woman.

“I stole the bottle from Pan,” Tink explained to Hook. “He must have known I had it, but he never came for it. He wanted me to keep hold of it.”

“There is no way he wouldn’t have known she was in there,” he replied, which the women agreed with. “Why would he have wanted you to have her?”

“I don’t know. Whatever the reason, it can’t be good.”

Tink left, bottle in hand, as Hook turned to Emma. “What are you thinking, Sheriff? Is she good, or bad?”

“I don’t know,” Emma muttered in reply before standing up off her stool. “I think it’s time we asked her.”

She walked over and slid into the booth next to her father, cup of coffee still in hand. “So, why did Gold trap you in the bottle?” she asked.

Till frowned. “Gold?”

“Rumplestiltskin,” Emma clarified. “The town was under a curse, it’s a whole thing. What did you do?”

Tilla looked around the table, up at Hook who was stood next to Emma, before turning back to the other woman. “He was punishing me,” she explained. “I got away from him, and made him go to Neverland to get me back.”

“You were his prisoner?” Charming asked and she shook her head.

“I’m kind of a part of him,” Tilla replied. She was expecting the confused looks sent her way, so she barely paused. “When I was a child he met me in the woods outside my cottage. He told me that he could help me make everyone happy, and he passed on a part of his magic to me. All his regret and guilt at his bad choices was tied up in the light magic that all magical beings possess, he decided to get rid of it.”

“Into a _child_?” Snow breathed, horrified and Tilla nodded.

“I travelled for a while, then one day I saw some boys being enchanted by a magical being I’d never heard of. I broke the spell, Pan wasn’t happy, and he swept me off to Neverland. I was there until Rumplestiltskin decided to trap me back in the bottle.”

Emma leant forward onto her elbows, staring intently at Tilla as she tried to determine whether she was telling the truth or not. Everyone around her waited silently for her judgement, almost as if they were expecting Emma to declare that she was lying. Instead all the Emma sensed what that she was holding some things back, but ultimately what she was saying didn’t make her any more suspicious than she was with most people.

She leant back into the seat. “Well, Gold isn’t here anymore, so you don’t have to worry about him,” she explained, giving her verdict. “I’m sure that Granny can find you a room for now.”

Tilla guessed that the lady who brought her the food was Granny, and also was who the diner was named after. She just nodded and picked up whatever was in front of her, giving it another bite. She wasn’t sure what it was, it appeared to be some meat between bread, but whatever was on it made it taste delicious and she was definitely going to have to try it again when she could afford to buy another.

She paused, and looked down at it, before swallowing her mouthful. “I don’t have any money to pay for this,” she stated. “Does anyone have any coins I could borrow until I find myself some work?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Charming brushed off. “Just focus on getting settled.”

_~0~0~0~_

Emma sat back down with her family after showing Tilla off to the room Granny had kindly let them use on the promise of payment to come. “So, what do we think?” she asked. “Should we be worried?”

“I don’t know,” Snow replied with a thoughtful frown on her face. “She doesn’t seem to be evil.”

“If Gold really did trap her in that bottle, then maybe we can trust her,” Charming offered, although he didn’t sound completely convinced himself. “After all, being an enemy of Rumplestiltskin isn’t exactly a bad thing.”

“It’s not necessarily a good thing, either,” Emma pointed out. She looked up at Hook. “She was on Neverland, but you and Tink don’t have any memories of her. That seems a bit strange, doesn’t it?”

“With Pan in charge of her fate, I wouldn’t be surprised about anything,” Hook replied.

“We could keep her close until we know more,” Charming suggested. “Give her some busy work at the station and try and find out more.”

Emma nodded. “She’s hiding something, I can tell you that,” she stated. “I’m just not sure what, and that worries me.”

_~0~0~0~_

Tilla sighed to herself as she shut the door behind her. She was glad to finally be on her own after being whisked from one place to another by the very enthusiastic townsfolk Tink had introduced her to.

She’d heard of lands without magic before, but for some reason she hadn’t expected them to be so bright and so loud. There had been music playing from nowhere down in the main part of the café below, which had been a little startling, and the strange carriages that had gone past them as they’d walked down the street had been rather noisy as well. Even this room, when Emma had turned on the light, had seemed brighter than it should have been. It was going to take her a while to get used to.

It wasn’t the only thing either. She walked over to the bed, sweeping the skirt of her dress out of the way as she sat down on it. It bounced strangely underneath her, but it wasn’t unpleasant. She hadn’t expected to be let out of the bottle at all, so she’d been ready to come out into a fight. Apparently, though, no one remembered she was in there. Rumplestiltskin had been right, she thought, as she looked down at the ring on her middle finger. She slowly twisted it backwards and forwards to watch it glitter in the light. The world had forgotten her when she’d been locked away.

She rubbed her face with both hands, feeling the tears appear in her eyes as she started crying to herself. She had known it was going to happen, but seeing Hook stare straight at her with no recognition was a pain she’d never felt before. Killian had truly forgotten her, and she had no idea what to do.

_~0~0~0~_

The night was dark, but the sea was calm, which Tilla had to be thankful for as she tried her hardest to sweep up the dirt that seemed to have accumulated on the ship’s flooring. Most of the men had retired for the evening, leaving only a bare bones crew that were watching for the night. They didn’t bother her, and she didn’t bother them. She just wanted to get on with cleaning by the ship’s wheel so that she could head off to bed herself.

She paused, leaning on the broom as she looked upwards. Not that she didn’t like the night sky, of course. Stars were so wonderful, and Neverland wasn’t exactly lacking in them. The clear sky and the bright moon just added to the beauty and she had yet to grow tired of it. She had always liked the night sky. When she was a little kid, she would look out of her bedroom window at night and watch the stars twinkle, believing them to be fairies.

She had since met fairies, and while they were not stars as she had once thought, they were as magical as her younger self wanted them to be.

She looked around, wondering the best way to get rid of the dirt she had swept up, before shrugging and brushing it over the side. Not that she wanted to anger the mermaids that swan the waters of Neverland, but they’d not notice a little dirt. She grimaced as she looked at the mop; for some reason it was the task she hated most.

She looked around again but this time to see if she was being watched. Most of the crew were on deck, except for the guy at the helm – she was still learning names, but she thought his name was Christopher. And, if she was honest, she wasn’t entirely convinced he was awake. He hadn’t seemed to notice her sweeping around him at any rate.

She grinned to herself and hitched up her skirt before running to the very back of the ship and jumping onto the back. She dangled her legs over the side and looked upwards happily. Oh, she did _love_ the sky.

“You know, that could be quite dangerous,” Hook’s voice called from the behind her. She jumped, startled, and quickly turned around in time to see him smack his crewman on the arm with his hook to jolt him awake. She quickly jumped down.

“Sorry, I was just…” she started before coming to the quick conclusion that she couldn’t really explain herself. “Sorry. I was just about to mop the floor.”

“It looked like you were more likely to fall off into the dark waters than use them to clean my ship,” Hook replied as he walked over to stand in front of her. “Getting bored already, are you? Perhaps I could help you pass your time.”

She tried not to cringe slightly. He didn’t mean it, obviously, but she still didn’t appreciate the joke. “I’m just happy not to be on land,” she told him bluntly. “I’ll mop any surface to not have to go back to Pan.”

He paused for a moment before nodded. “Aye, I can understand that,” he told her. “I’m not sure jumping to your death is the best way to go about it, though.” He motioned to the floor. “Finish up here.”

“I wasn’t jumping,” she said as he turned away. “I was looking at the stars.”

“The stars?”

She nodded. “I don’t know a lot about them,” she admitted. “I just like them a lot.”

Something Captain Hook had come to notice over the short while she had been on his ship was that she was rather good at following orders. Once she had been shown her duties, she had kept them up with no complaint, no whining, but most importantly with no magic. “If you’re looking for a bit of a break, there is a quicker way for you to do so.”

She had starting mopping, with a mop that had definitely seen better days. “You mean why don’t I just use magic to clean?” she replied as if she had been able to tell his thoughts. “My magic is like a homing beacon. If I use it, there is a chance that someone will see and know it’s me. Can’t have that, can we?”

“Ah, you’re worried about alerting Pan to your whereabouts,” he stated and she shook her head.

“No, Captain, someone else. Someone you’re very familiar with,” she paused and met his gaze. “I’m not hiding from Pan. I’m hiding from the Dark One.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a plot bunny that I come back to time and time again, and I thought you might like it :)


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